Carson Gulley (June 9, 1897 – November 2, 1962) was head chef at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

from 1926 to 1954. He is known in part for popularizing a recipe for fudge-bottom pie that is still served on campus today. The

refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the La ...

where he once served as head chef is now known as Carson Gulley Commons. It was the first university building at the University of Wisconsin–Madison to be named after an African American. Gulley was also a local pioneer in television and radio cooking programming. From 1953 to 1962, Gulley had his own weekly cooking show, called "What's Cooking", on local television station WMTV. Also, in 1953, he hosted a twice-weekly local radio cooking program, called "WIBA Cooking School of the Air", and each month compiled the program's recipes in booklets that listeners could request by mail. He and his wife Beatrice were the first African American couple to host their own television show in Wisconsin in the 1950s. He led the Madison branch of the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...

. Having failed for many years to buy a house in

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

, he made an emotional appeal to the Madison City Council's Committee on Human Rights. This in part led to the City Council passing a Fair Housing Ordinance. He published his first book ''Seasoning Secrets: Herbs and Spices'' in 1949 at the suggestion of George Washington Carver.

Early life

Gulley was born in Zama,

Nevada County, Arkansas Nevada County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 8,997, less than half of its peak in 1920. The county seat is Prescott. Nevada County is Arkansas's 63rd coun ...

to a family of

sharecropper Sharecropping is a legal arrangement with regard to agricultural land in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land. Sharecropping has a long history and there are a wide range ...

s. He was one of ten children.

Bibliography

* ''Seasoning Secrets: Herbs and Spices'', 1949; revised 1956

References

External links

Fudge-bottom pie taste test

The Carson Gulley Cookbook Collection

Newly remodeled Carson Gulley Center is open for dining, events
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gulley, Carson 1897 births 1962 deaths Activists for African-American civil rights American male chefs People from Nevada County, Arkansas